Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-05-14
THE YEARLY FIRE HAVOC
WORKING ITS WILL IN THE MICHIGAN
TIMBER REGIONS.

The Air ob-cured h, Heavy smoke Cloud
and Numerous Villages Threatened with
Total De,tructinn-H isconsin Forests and
Farms al" Devastated The Cyclone
Sweeps "a Nebraska County,
ISHFEMIv,. Mich. Nav l4-Ever since
Monday, q black, heavy cloud of smoke has
hung over The oiiy Forest fires were reported
at four point, IN the upper peninsula last
week, but ne great damage was done till
TUESDAY tie lO.it. when the flames began
spreading RAPIDLY Vow fires spIang up in
the pine timber as thou-h by magic, and
burned barge AREA. and kept largely ncreas-
ing Wednesday, THURSDAY and Friday Many
thousand dollars worth Of damage has been
done TO standing pine in Marquette Iron
OntOnagon. Menominee Delta, Alger
and Schooicraft counties. Wednesday
afternoon Foster City and Metropolitan, two
small mining and numbering villages on the
Fitch Mountain branch of the Chicago Il
Northwestern railway, were threatened with
total destruction, but, through the efforts of
the Escauahs fire department and employees
OF the lumber company, escaped At STAN
baHgh and Iron River, BacIey, Stephenson,
lagos the fires are dangerously close and
the townspeople badly scared and fighting
fires along the line of the Milwaukee
& Northern railroad from a point south of
Marinette Wis. Ia Republic, Mich The fires
are burning with terrible violence. No large
settlements are now threatened as the coun-
try is sparsely settled hut great quantities of
cedar posts, railroad ties, and cordwool. as
well as standing timber, have been burned
Along the line OF the South Shore railway
from Marquette To NewbeiTy, great damage
Is being done Reports from the Manistique
region say that the fires are not dangerous in
that part of the peninsula. The fires are
the most serious known in northern
Michigan for many years and are wide
spread. Northern Wisconsin is also suffer
ing severely. 1t Is impossible to get the
names of all the losers, but among those who
are already suffering heavily are: Charles
johnson, George Mcdonald, of Marquette;
Kirby, Carpenter & Co, Marinette Hon At
kinson, Metropolitan. e. r. Royce, Escanaha;
Michigan Land & Iron company, Marinette,
and many others. 1t Is impossible to estimate
the losses but they will amount up in the tens
of thousands, and unless rain comes speedily
Will continue gaining
BRAINERD, MINI, MAY 14-Rain Friday
night brought most timely relief from forest
fires raging along the Mississippi eastward
from Brainerd. that have destroyed large
areas Of pine timber and much ties, wood
and logs on the river bank good many
settlers also We're about cleaned out, losing
some stock and buildings. Upward of two
townships were burned over before the rain
came.
MARQUETTE, Mich MAY 1.-THE whole
peninsula Is enveloped IN smoke and the tele-
graph wires are badly crippled The follow
ing is the situation as far as heard from:
Palns-The fires are raging fearfully and
there are fears that the town will burn,
though surrounded with green grass Farm
ers on clearings will lose everything a large
amount ot pine and cedar Is burning
500 Junctipn-Alen are being driven from
camps ou the run from the east by fire, Fire
is on the 500 branch and is raging fiercely
There is no telling the amount of damage
Newherry-The fires are diving out, but the
smoke is intolerable
Negaunee- fires are spreading to the
north and east and entering the vast tract of
valuable land The damage is already thou
sands OF dollars.
and northeast of the city, and south, near
Cascade, valuable strip of hard timber is
now burning.
Baraga- The smoke is getting unbearable,
and it looks as though the fires are approach
ing on the west end of the old Marquette,
Houghton Il Ontonagon road The fires are
subsdmg, hut the damage is not ascertaina-
bic. Great damage has been done along the
Chicago q Northwestern from Menominee
north, but the worst is over
GREEN BAY. Wis, May 14-FOrest fires
are increasing IN all directions. The smoke
has hung thickly about the city all day. On
the lines of the railroads fires are burning on
both sides Of the track Farmers in all direc-
tons are discouraged at the prospect They
are both fearful in regard to the fires which
threaten them and the disastrous effects of
the drought that has already set in, and bids
fair to be like the disastrous one of last sum
mer. Masters of steamers report it impossible
to see any distance